


are we ready for this?

by ericaismeg, foxerica (ericaismeg)



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: First Kiss, Love Confessions, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-05
Updated: 2020-05-05
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:13:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 870
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24020374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericaismeg/pseuds/ericaismeg, https://archiveofourown.org/users/ericaismeg/pseuds/foxerica
Summary: This is just a short work. Some fluff for your day. Nothing serious, not edited.
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Comments: 6
Kudos: 104





	are we ready for this?

**Author's Note:**

> This is just a short work. Some fluff for your day. Nothing serious, not edited.

"Derek, quit it!" Stiles says, nudging his best friend. He rolls his eyes and snatches the keyboard from under Derek's hands. "It's _perfect."_

"No, it isn't!"

"Yes. Yes, it is." Stiles gets up from the couch, ready to dart away, when Derek's hands slip around his waist. He yelps as Derek yanks Stiles onto his lap. "Whoa!"

While Stiles is staring into Derek's eyes, bright and hopeful, Derek steals the keyboard from his hands. He understands Derek's anxiety, he does. It's a big deal. They're taking their comic updates off the free internet and moving it to Patreon. Derek's still working full-time as a vet at the clinic Scott bought into a few years ago, but Stiles just quit his job. He's putting everything he has into trusting that this will work. He _knows_ it can work. He has a better handle on his ADHD now, so focusing isn't the hardest mountain to climb anymore. He _can_ spend his days drawing and writing comics with Derek.

If only Derek had as much faith as him.

Derek keeps grumbling about not wanting to support them with his inheritance, but it's not like Derek doesn't already pay for everything as it is. His family's inheritance will cover Derek's expenses for the rest of his life. Stiles doesn't get why he's working _anyway._ Derek's passion is the comic universe they created together at sixteen, lying on Stiles' bedroom floor.

Suddenly, Derek shoves Stiles off his lap and starts typing again. He's rewritten the paragraph at least a dozen times. "Dude! It was perfect."

"It really wasn't," Derek grumbles. He stabs the enter key with a little too much force and it flies off. "Dammit!"

Stiles reaches over, grabs Derek's hands in his, and says, "It's okay. Dude, it's okay. It honestly looks great, and we'll replace the key. But you gotta breathe. Why are you acting like this is a big deal for you?"

"Because, it is!"

"You're _rich._ You don't have to work a day in your life if you don't want to!" Stiles points out, his voice rising to match Derek's.

"You wouldn't understand."

"Humour me," Stiles says, hesitating as he reaches out to put his hand on Derek's. "What's on your mind, Hale?"

It's a while before Derek speaks again, but Stiles stays as still as he possibly can. It means he's tapping his toes like crazy, but the rest of him seems calm. He gently picks up the laptop and sets it onto the coffee table. When Derek speaks, it's almost a whisper. "This will be the first time I've earned money for something I love."

"The animal hospital?" Stiles asks, tilting his head.

Derek shrugs. "That was my mom's thing. That's why I made Scott a partner."

"A partner?"

"Yeah. I'm a silent partner. Technically, it was mine. I sold it to him."

"But... Deaton?"

"Just an employee," Derek explains. He gestures towards the computer. "This is like..."

It dawns on Stiles. All the worry that has been building up in Derek. Why he's been a total pain in the ass about the formatting and looking for the perfect words. "Oh. This is the first time you'll have _earned_ your own money."

"How do I know if people will like them?"

"Dude! We have a massive following for our comics! People _love_ them! People are going to pay." Stiles hesitates before adding, "At least, I hope they will. Look at all the additional benefits they're getting. We can make this work. Just have a little faith."

Derek nods, his eyebrows coming together as he stares down at the computer screen. Stiles gives one of Derek's hands a little squeeze.

"It's going to be okay."

"Stiles, I-- I shouldn't start this without being totally upfront and honest with you."

"O-oh." Stiles pulls his hands away, leaning back. Bracing himself. This is it. This is the moment that Derek Hale, the popular jock in high school, tells Stiles Stilinski, the resident dork of Beacon Hills High that this friendship is a total joke. That Derek was pranking him. That they haven't been best friends for the last seven years. That--

"I like you."

 _That Derek likes him?_ Stiles' mouth drops a little, he can't stop himself, and he tries to process it. There are days when Stiles can't believe Derek's one of his best friends, but to _like_ him?

"Wait- which kind of like?"

"What?" Derek sputters, looking at Stiles as if he has two heads. "What do you mean which _kind_ of like?"

"Like, do you like me, as a friend? As a person? Or do you, y'know, _like-like_ me?"

"Like-like!" Derek shakes his head, covering his face with his hands. He groans loudly, as if it's physically painful. "I never should have said anything and I--"

"Wait, wait." Stiles puts a hand on Derek's thigh, surprised when he feels Derek tense. "I _like-like_ you too."

"You do?" Derek peeks through his fingers.

Stiles laughs, tossing his head back. "Yes, you dummy. I've had the biggest crush on you since the science project in high school."

After an argument about who liked who first, Derek and Stiles hit 'Launch' on their Patreon account. They celebrate with a kiss.

xx

**Author's Note:**

> Please read about my **[important updates here.](http://www.withlove-ronnie.tumblr.com)**
> 
> Thanks!


End file.
